San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum throws against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning of their baseball game in San Francisco, Friday, April 23, 2010. San Francisco won the game 4-1 and Lincecum won his fourth start.

Photo: Eric Risberg, AP

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum throws against...

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Fans record San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum's eighth strikeout on the outfield wall in the seventh inning of their baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals in San Francisco, Friday, April 23, 2010. San Francisco won the game 4-1 and Lincecum won his fourth start.

Photo: Eric Risberg, AP

Fans record San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum's...

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San Francisco Giants right fielder Andres Torres, right, greets third baseman Pablo Sandoval at the end of their baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals in San Francisco, Friday, April 23, 2010. San Francisco won the game 4-1.

The Giants were coming off a 1-5 trip to the Southland. They were opening a homestand against the teams widely favored to win the three National League divisions. They were hitless in 20 straight at-bats with runners in scoring position and had a three-game losing streak against left-handed starting pitchers, and a lefty was on deck.

Yeah, but Tim Lincecum pitched, and that tends to offset an awful lot.

In a game in which last year's Cy Young Award winner (Lincecum) outperformed last year's Most Valuable Player (Albert Pujols), the Giants beat the Cardinals 4-1 with the home team decked out in orange jerseys, supposedly a new Friday night tradition.

Lincecum, who struck out eight batters in seven innings, remains perfect against the Cardinals - 5-0 with a 1.29 ERA - and became the first pitcher to win his first five starts against St. Louis since the Reds' Ross Grimsley won six straight from 1971 to 1973.

"When Tim's on the mound, we have the utmost confidence we could score one run and still win," said closer Brian Wilson, who struck out three of four batters in the ninth inning to preserve the victory. "Anytime Tim pitches, the crowd is electric. We can feel that, and it gives us a sense of confidence as well."

Pujols blasted a double off the wall on the first pitch he saw from Lincecum but was a nonfactor the rest of the night, going 1-for-4 with two strikeouts - one by Lincecum and one by Sergio Romo, a bright moment for Romo in the wake of the game-deciding home run he surrendered to Manny Ramirez at Dodger Stadium on Sunday.

Lincecum threw 120 pitches (his season high by 12), overcoming the first three innings in which five batters reached base. Perhaps the turning point was the third inning - two aboard, no outs and Pujols and Matt Holliday coming up. Pujols popped out, and Holliday bounced into a double play on a 3-0 fastball away.

"You've got to take it up that next notch," Lincecum said. "The focus kind of goes up a little more."

The Cardinals' only run came in the sixth on an RBI single by Bengie Molina's kid brother, Yadier. Lincecum is off to his best start, 4-0 with a 1.00 ERA, but wasn't fully pleased with his performance or his three walks.

"You go back to the chalkboard," he said. "I have to criticize myself more than the next person, just like anybody else in here would. I felt I threw too many pitches, too many balls. I really wasn't working efficiently out there. I'm just a big battler.

" If I don't have my best stuff, I'll still try to throw my four pitches. I've just got to be more fine with it. Not like I was trying to nitpick. I was trying to be aggressive. I just wasn't throwing it where I wanted to."

The Giants, who hadn't gotten a hit with a runner in scoring position since Monday, quickly ended the streak. After Andres Torres doubled to open the first inning - he led off because Eugenio Velez was struggling at No. 1 - DeRosa hit an infield single. The run scored on shortstop Brendan Ryan's throwing error from behind second base.

The Giants scored two more in the third inning, this time aided by second baseman Skip Schumaker's error. Aubrey Huff's grounder bounced right through his legs, scoring DeRosa. Huff scored on Nate Schierholtz's bases-loaded single to Pujols, who gloved the three-hopper but lost a footrace to the bag.

The Giants made it 4-0 in the fifth on pitcher Jaime Garcia's wild pitch.

Briefly: Shortstop Edgar Renteria was scratched with a sore left shoulder, the same shoulder that shelved him 19 of the final 20 games last season. He had surgery Sept. 26 for his right elbow. Juan Uribe moved to short, and Matt Downs started at second. Manager Bruce Bochy didn't know if Renteria would play tonight. ... Wilson, whose ERA is 0.00, had his first save opportunity in 17 days.